July 17, 2015 11:46 am

According to the Directive 2014/89/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 July 2014, Poland was forced to establish a framework for maritime spatial planning. Currently, the state has not a clear maritime borders, so it is required to specify the new Polish borders in the Baltic Sea.

Due to an amendment to the act, made by the European Parliament and the European Council, Poland is obliged to set up a new contiguous zone in the Baltic Sea, which will bring numerous consequences both on the domestic and international level.

As this issue is a vital political decision, TermCoord decided to choose “contiguous zone” as the IATE term of the week.

According to the Convention on the Law of the Sea, “Every State has the right to establish the breadth of its territorial sea up to a limit not exceeding 12 nautical miles, measured from baselines determined in accordance with this Convention”. Currently, Poland determine precisely a new territorial sea baseline. If Poland complies with the aforementioned European Directive, the State will acquire the right to “installations for the production of energy from renewable sources, oil and gas exploration and exploitation, maritime shipping and fishing activities, ecosystem and biodiversity conservation, the extraction of raw materials, tourism, aquaculture installations and underwater cultural heritage”.

The game is worth a candle as putting this law into force means the possibility of making significant profit, such as obtaining the extra rights connected with the counterterrorism, customs, treasury, migration and sanitary regulations related to the historic or archaeological buildings and structures. Indeed, specifying the maritime borderline is also perceived as a promotion of sustainable development, coastal resources and green economy. Therefore, implementing this policy will help to create jobs in Poland, set up new natural reserves and protected areas as well as take care of the underwater cultural heritage.

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